iowa caucus notes. and go vote.

Yes, of course I was excited last night while eating dinner. Who wouldn't be? With the Rose Bowl a complete bust (not unexpected I guess), Iowa Caucus night was written in to my calendar. I'm in Champaign right now, and I even got several of my dawghaus friends to join me (well, their commitment varied).

I flipped between CNN (but avoiding Wolf), MSNBC, and C-SPAN/2 for coverage, watching the totals creep upwards as the return percentage grew. Some of the most interesting stuff showed up when C-SPAN started simulcasting the local Iowa coverage from KCCI, which is fun both for local perspectives and the self-conscious way local TV reporters stare into the camera.

My random quick thoughts:

• Obama's win was a surprise to me. I expected 1) Clinton 2) Obama and distant third Edwards. The analysis of stats say the reason he won was a) women voted for him more than Hillary, b) Democrats supporters of second/third tier candidates switched their votes to him c) independents chose him. Sounds about right.
• Huckabee wasn't a surprise win (I've got previous posts on him - knowing he's going somewhere). But I was surprised that Romney did so badly. Huckabee's message that was outspent 20 to 1 but still beat Romney isn't political just rhetoric - it happened.
• Check out Huckabee on Leno the night before (youtube search). He played the bass and had some interesting stuff to say, plus he did okay being funny.
• Guiliani and McCain didn't do well but are supposed to play well in the rest of the nation. We'll see. If they both do poorly in New Hampshire, I think they're in trouble.

People know this is one of my drums, but if you haven't been paying attention before, now is the time. The primaries are where it happens. Watch, investigate, and vote in the primaries. Don't wait until the general election when you'll complain that "you don't like either candidate."

In Illinois, our primary is scheduled on on "Super Tuesday," which will be huge for choosing who runs. It will not be locked up yet, and Illinois has a lot of sway.